Jewish cultural revival in contemporary Poland

Culture of Poland

The country of Poland has a rich history and while it is not commonly known, Poland was home to many Jews prior to what is termed a 'Hitler's Horror' in Poland. Several alternative names exist for the country of Poland however, in the tenth century the name 'Polanie' is reported to have been derived from the name of a Slavonic tribe near Poznan, which means "dweller of people of the field, meadow, or plain." (Every Culture, 2008) Poland is located in Central Europe and cover more than 120,700 square miles and is bordered on the north by the Baltic Sea, Russian, and Lithuania. On the east, Poland is bordered by Belarus and the Ukraine and on the South by Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Poland is bordered on the west by Germany. Poland is a Republic and has a population of 38,622,660 with the ethnic composition including 97.6% Polish, 1.3% German, and 0.6% Ukrainian individuals. The primary language spoken in the country of Poland is Polish and ninety-five percent of individuals in the country are Roman Catholics, with those claiming the religion of Eastern Orthodox Protestant and other faith comprising only five percent of the population in Poland.

I. HISTORICAL POLAND & PRESENT DAY GOVERNMENT

The original capital of Poland was Cracow (Krakow) however, in 1611, the capital was moved to Warsaw and today remains the current seat of government in Poland. Poland's principal action is the central state administration is formulation of funding principles and cultural policy objectives. Critical for the development of the culture in Poland are the "National Theatre, National Opera, State Art Gallery 'Zacheta', Centre of Contemporary Art, the Royal Castel in Warsaw, and the Royal Castel of Wawel." (European Culture Portal, 2008) the governmental body responsible for the legislation field and for mapping out the cultural policy of the state and for monitoring the implementation of the same is the Ministry of Culture. The Ministry of Culture is responsible for maintaining an observation of the changing which are ongoing in the system and for identification of new solutions "in the sphere of financing sources for the cultural sector." (European Culture Portal, 2008) the core tasks of the Ministry of Culture include the setting of."..legal, financial and program frameworks to encourage the development of culture at the national level." (European Culture Portal, 2008)

III. POLAND, the FAMILY, and the SPECIAL ROLE of WOMEN

The work entitled: "World Congress of Families IV" states that the World Congress of Families IV started in Warsaw "under the patronage of President of the Republic of Poland Lech Kacyznski." (Carlson, 2007) Stated in this report is that the family has "for centuries..." occupied an important position in the tradition of the Polish. (Carlson, 2007) Additionally stated is that the power of the Republic has not had as its basis primary on arms of financial resources "but its main source was the strength of the families that created it." (Carlson, 2007) This is particularly held to be so due to the "readiness of families to sacrifice for the common good...visible in the times of the 19th century uprisings and also during World War II when the Polish anti-Nazi subversion found support in homes of the families of young soldiers of the underground Home Army, among them parents and grandparents." (Carlson, 2007) Additionally in this work is recalled a feature "of the Polish understanding of the family about the special position and role of women." (Carlson, 2007) Stated to be due to the times when "men in their prime were leaving homes to defend the country or when they were jailed for their independence actions..." because during those times it was indeed "the women who secured the continuation of family in unity, took care over the households and properties and were upbringing successive generation in the Polish spirit transferring them to the heritage of identity." (Carlson, 2007)

IV. FAMILY ISSUES FACED by POLAND & EUROPE at-LARGE

It was reported in September 2000 by Eva Grangier in the work entitled: "Concrete Effects of the EU's Eastward Expansion on the Cultural Sector: European Cultural Policy in Poland" that "the difficulties related to the European Union enlargement concern historical, political, economic, but also cultural issues." Specifically Poland is stated to be "passing through a period of instability and identity crisis, which can be explained by the country's historical context, pre-war development and years spent under socialism, by the reforms undertaken or needed, by the economic transformations and the growing social gap." (Grangier, 2000) it is held by Grainger that the Polish people "bereft of 45 years of its history...trying to find themselves and are experiencing a crisis of values." (Grangier, 2000) This crisis is stated to include: "corruption, political rivalries, family values, superstitions, sects...Except for religion, it is difficult to say what the Polish people still believe in." (Grangier, 2000) Poland has undergone great difficulties since the 18th century, which include "partitions, wars, repatriations, changing borders" and even so.." A strong feeling of national affiliation persists and does so thanks to the attachment to religion and to the Polish language."(Grangier, 2000) the work of Lulek and Paga (1989) relates that an analysis of "selected segments of the Polish economy reveals several spheres of inequality..." including inequalities relating to wages and household assets and some that are specific to a "centrally planned economy" particularly those in the areas of decision-making "and those resulting from a twofold attitude toward various forms of ownership" in the country of Poland. (1989) the work of Willet et al. entitled: "Prevention of Chronic Disease by Means of Diet and Lifestyle Changes" that: "Poland provides a striking example of how changes in subsidies can affect health." (Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries, nd) Willet et al. states: "Governments often subsidize foods indirectly by sheltering them from sales taxes in the recognition that they are essential; however, this logic should not extend to foods with adverse health effects, such as sugar-sweetened beverages and those high in trans fats. Legislation can make this distinction, providing a modest economic incentive for healthier choices and at the same time conveying important nutritional messages." (Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries, nd) Stated additionally is that following the transition of Poland to a democratic government in the early part of the 1990s "the government removed large subsidies for butter and lard, and consumption of nonhydrogenated vegetable fat increased rapidly. The ratio of dietary polyunsaturated to saturated fat increased from 0.33 in 1990 of.056 in 1999, and during this period mortality rates from CAD dropped by 28%. Changes in smoking and in the consumption of fruits and vegetables probably played a minor role in this decrease." (Disease Priorities in Developing Countries, nd) This information is shown in the following chart labeled Figure 1.

Source: Willet et al. (nd)

The work of Beblo and Lauer (2002) reports an analysis of the "intergenerational transmission of poverty from Polish parents to their children through children's educational attainment during the transition process of the 1990s." In an investigation of the relationship that exists between the background of the family and the education findings show that "children' education is strongly related to the structure of the household, the education of parents, the size of the city and the region of residence." However, the income of the household and the labor market situation of the parents are found to have only a weak, although significant effect on the education of children. (Beblo and Lauer, 2002; paraphrased) the work of Fratczak (2004) reports, in the work entitled: "Family and Fertility in Poland - Changes During the Transition Period" in the country of Poland, "among the three basic demographic processes, which are fertility, mortality and migration, it is fertility that has undergone the most dynamic changes in scale and range in Poland under transition." The following chart shows the change in fertility patterns between 1989-2001 in both urban and rural areas in Poland.

Change in Fertility Pattern 1989-2001 (female fertility rates in years 1989 and 2001 - live births per 1000 females)

Source: Fratczak (2004)

There are noted to be changes in the process of family formation and dissolution and specifically stated is that Poland is "one of the countries in which family model used to be a traditional one, based on the history of first marriages." The primary characteristics were that of "marriage universality and a relatively young age of spouses at marriage. Consensual unions were scarce." (Fratczak, 2004) Historically and traditionally marriages in the country of Poland were characterized as extremely durable due to the primary reason for dissolution of a marriage to be the death of one spouse at the rate of about 80% with divorce following second at 20%. Changes in family formation are stated to have emerged in the decade of the 1990s specifically in relation to "first marriage patterns, which turned into permanent behavior" and noted to be characterized by: (1) changed intensity of first marriages, which confirms diminished tendency to marry; (2) lowering values of partial coefficients, especially in age groups: under 19, 20-24, 25-29 and 30-34, which is a sign of diminishing intensity of first marriages; (3) increase in mean age at first marriage to about 24 for women and 26.5 for men in 2001. The family has become destandardized and the rate of those who stay single and never marry is growing while the rate of children being born is falling therefore the result is that the "distribution and sequence of events in family life cycle are changing" (Fratczak, 2004) in the country of Poland.

SUMMARY & CONCLUSION

The predominant religion in Poland is that of the Catholic faith however, as noted earlier in this study there is a great renewal of Jewish culture in this country, which originally was home to a great number of Jewish people. Also noted earlier in this study is what seems to be a general lack of acknowledgement in recent years in terms of religious faith among the Polish people who are still attempting to catch up to themselves after the impacts from the Holocaust in the country of Poland which apparently was brushed aside and characterized by a failure of the Polish people to acknowledge fully or to effectively cope, as a cultural society, with the implications and impact of the holocaust in terms of the effects upon the Jewish members of Polish cultural society. The Polish family was historically a very traditional model however, since the 1990's, the dynamics of the Polish family are changing with marriages taking place later in life, those who remain single growing and the number of children born in the country of Poland falling in number. Poland is a country with deep national pride and a country that has suffered through many political and economic difficulties including wars, the time perpetrated by Hitler, as well as many other difficulties noted in this study. There is a great wealth of culture and history in the country of Poland which is presently being preserved in its heritage by many sectors of culture and society. Poland is a country that everyone has heard of but a country of which few have taken the interest to explore. However, upon even a brief examination of Poland such as this present work in writing, it must be acknowledge that the cultural depth and history of the country of Poland represents a vast wealth should not be lost to history but instead preserved by the present population living in this country for future generations to appreciate.